Thursday, August 11, 2011

Khanal gets Maldives invite for SAARC meet

Maldives has formally invited Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal to the 17th SAARC summit, which will be held in the island nation in November.

Ibrahim Hussein Zaki, an emissary of President Mohamed Nasheed, today met PM Khanal at his official residence to hand over the invitation.

Maldives is set to host the leaders of the regional bloc in Addu City from November 10-11. Zaki had reached Kathmandu on Sunday, but his meeting with Khanal, slated for Monday, was put off following Prime Minister’s ill health.

During the meeting, Zaki, a former Secretary General of SAARC, is said to have briefed PM Khanal about preparations for the summit.

Zaki said he considers Nepal as his ‘second home’ as he had spent three years here as SAARC Secretary General in 1990s, according to PM’s foreign affairs adviser Milan Raj Tuladhar.

In his letter to Khanal, President Nasheed mentioned, “I believe that by building greater ties between our people and countries and integrating our economies, we can build a prosperous future. I hope the summit will help us overcome some of today’s challenges.”

Khanal expressed hope that the summit would give much needed impetus to a more active and dynamic SAARC.